European Union will approve a new package of sanctions against Russia on Monday, including 150 additional entities and 50 banks. The announcement was made by French Minister for European Affairs, Benjamin Haddad. According to him, France had proposed adding most of the entities on this list.
The new sanctions aim to increase economic pressure on Moscow and support for Ukraine, he wrote. “On Monday, we will impose new sanctions against Russia, against 150 additional entities and 50 banks, and it is France that proposed adding most of the entities,” Haddad stated.
Economic pressure will continue and France will support Ukraine, he added, without giving further details on the content of the package. The announcement comes at a time of heightened tensions between Paris and Moscow, after Russia’s decision on Wednesday to ban entry into the country for several French citizens.
Among them are journalist Ariane Chemin of Le Monde, independent journalist and former Moscow correspondent Paul Gogo, and two French lawmakers, Sacha Houlie and Arthur Delaporte. Haddad described this decision as a threat and stressed that France will not be intimidated. “This is a threat.
France will not be intimidated. I think these lawmakers and these journalists are doing their job, these lawmakers are clearly very involved in the fight against foreign interference,” the French minister said. Earlier, Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot wrote on X that the fact that the Kremlin was presenting the ban as a response to the expulsion from France in July of Xenia Fedorova confirmed her ties to Russian authorities.
Fedorova, former director of RT France, had become a prominent figure on the CNews news channel and related media, Europe 1 and JDNews, and was accused by French authorities of spreading Russian disinformation.